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Book Clubs for Kids
This article discusses how to start a book club at home, or at school.
Book Clubs at Home – Starting a Parent/Child Book Club
Purpose of a Book Club
Before starting a book club it is important to establish your purpose.
- Reading is Fun. Belonging to a children’s book club should communicate that reading good books and sharing ideas about the books is fun. Never drag your child to a book club, make sure they want to participate.
- Promote Life Long Learning & Reading.
- Social & Academic Skills. Book clubs promote independent thinking, abilities to form and express opinions, abilities to recognize and develop personal values, skills to speak and listen with respect, and abilities to listen with an open mind.
- Focus on the Kids. Whether the book club is for kids only (led by an adult), or a combined adult/child book club, the focus needs to be on the kids. Adults are there to learn and read along with the kids, and to help kids by asking questions to promote thinking, discussion, and listening skills. Adults are not there to dictate the discussion.
- Personal, Emotional, and Intellectual Growth. Choosing quality books, with interesting discussions will help participants to grow personally, emotionally, and intellectually.
Organizing & Planning
- Size: Keep a book club small. Book experts suggest 4-6 kids and parents is an optimal size. A smaller group can meet in homes, in a room at the library, or at a bookstore.
- Ages: Book clubs are for all ages. Although many book clubs are organized around tweens and teens, young children can also have a book club. Young children can express interesting opinions if the activities and books are tangible to their level of interest and maturity. Many libraries organize teen book clubs in an effort to keep teens reading and involved in the library.
- Length of Meeting: Consider 2-hour meetings, which will allow time for an activity, snack, discussion, and socialization.
- Regular Meetings: Meet once a month even if reading a book over two months. Children enjoy consistency.
- Membership: Decide whether the members will be all boys, all girls, or a mix. Decide whether the members will be all the same age and abilities. It is best to keep the spread of ages to no more than 2-3 years apart. Look for members whose interests and personalities match and complement each other. Similar reading levels, friendships outside of the club, cooperative attitudes, comfort in participation in discussions, and an interesting mix of viewpoints can all lead to a successful book club. Don't forget the boys! Although many book clubs are for girls, boys and fathers make great book clubs!
- Leadership: Decide who will lead the discussions. This role is usually taken by an adult (parent, librarian, teacher), but can be an older child such as in a teen book club. Decide if the leader will be the same each time or will rotate. A leader can prepare questions, as well as research information about the author or the book's content. For example, if the book takes place in a different country, the leader can bring in factual information about the country and what was happening in the country at the time the story takes place. Sometimes if you write the publisher of the book and include a self-addressed envelope, the publisher will send a letter or information from the author.
Elements of a Book Club Meeting
The book club meeting should have sufficient time for announcements, a snack, an activity, discussion and socialization. Kids love to eat, so make sure a snack is part of the meeting. Activities are more important for younger children but can also be made appropriate for older children. For example, older kids might love to come dressed in period costumes, or to make/eat food from the culture represented in the book. Discussion questions should be prepared beforehand by the leader. Remember that socialization is an important element of the book club and allow time for it!
Choosing Books
- Determine Boundaries: Parents should decide up front if there are types of books or topics that they are not comfortable reading or discussing in a book club. Reassess every 6 months to see if boundaries can be expanded with members' growing maturity.
- Host Selects:With book clubs that rotate between homes, the group can decide that the host will select the book for discussion in their home.
- Sources for Book Suggestions: Talk to your librarian for book suggestions. Pick up a book that lists books for boys or girls to read. Get ideas from Bright Kids World website! Include the kids in the decision making process!
Great Discussions
In addition to encouragement of reading quality books, book clubs are excellent ways to have kids practice good communication skills - listening, taking turns, forming opinions, expressing opinions in a positive manner, and developing personal values.
- Set Guidelines for Discussion: In the first meeting of the book club, have the kids decide what guidelines they want to have for discussion. How will they handle disagreements? How will they handle someone who wants to do all the talking? How will they encourage quieter members? What if an adult is dominating the discussion rather than allowing time for the kids to express their opinions?
- Allow Time To Put Words Together: Since this is training kids how they can express their opinions, allow them time to put their words together when it is their turn.
- Decide How Long Discussions Should Be: Depending on the age of members, discussions can be 20 minutes to an hour long.
- Develop Traditions: Decide if you always want to start a discussion in a certain way such as sharing a vocabulary word or a character from the book that they found interesting, or if you want to end the discussion in a regular way such as everyone providing a book rating. (Share these ratings with Bright Kids World so other book clubs will benefit!) Another way to end the meeting is to offer time for all the kids to share a book that they have read that they really enjoyed.
- Ask a Wide Variety of Questions: Ask questions about the importance of the setting, how characters interact well (or not), how characters coped with difficult situations and what the consequences were for their actions. Ask for predictions of what will happen to the characters from where the story left off. (Share your questions with Bright Kids World so other book clubs will benefit!)
- Create a Safe Atmosphere: Provide an atmosphere and attitude that makes it safe for kids to express their opinions as they explore topics that can be difficult for them.
Book Clubs at School – Junior Great Books Program
What is Junior Great Books?
The Great Books Foundation is an independent, non-profit educational organization. Established in 1947, they introduced the Junior Great Books program in 1962 to expand their mission to include children. The "Shared Inquiry" method is promoted as the way to help people think and share ideas when discussion books. Program for K-12 readers are provided, with readings and discussion questions. In addition, training is offered for discussion leaders to learn the most effective methodologies for promoting effective book discussions.
Advantages of a Junior Great Books Program
The primary advantage of a Junior Great Books Program is that it is structured and already in place. The readings, the discussion methodology, and the suggested activities and questions are ready to go. With over 45 years of experience, their program is well honed. It is a program recognized and well-accepted, and starting a Junior Great Books program will likely be easily approved for a school. If materials are needed, you are likely to find that there are organizations that will be willing to approve funds or grants to support this well-recognized program.
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